


A New Journey [FormerlyComfort IX]

by AnnaOnTheMoon



Series: A New Journey [1]
Category: Star Trek: The Next Generation
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-19
Updated: 2017-10-19
Packaged: 2019-01-20 00:25:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,930
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12421263
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnnaOnTheMoon/pseuds/AnnaOnTheMoon
Summary: This story revolves around Journey's End. Wesley learns about his mother's new relationship and makes a decision about his future.





	A New Journey [FormerlyComfort IX]

**Author's Note:**

> Bold text is from the script from Journey's End. Bold/italic is also a quote.

Beverly flitted about the quarters she now shared with Jean-Luc. Fluffing cushions, putting books away, making sure there were no wine glass rings on the tables....making sure everything was perfect for her son’s visit.  Jean-Luc looked on from the doorway and grinned. 

“Beverly, love, Wesley isn’t even staying with us.”

“I know. But, I can’t help it.  We weren’t living together last time...”  Jean-Luc took her hands and led her to sit on the sofa. 

“My love, Wesley has known we were together since he was a young boy.  Do you really think i will come as a surprise to find out that we are together.”

“Wesley has never seen me with a boyfriend before.” Jean-Luc raised his eyebrows.

“Boyfriend?  Don’t you think I’m a little old to be called a boyfriend?”

“Well, Manfriend just sounds silly.”

“Indeed it does.”

“What do you want me to call you? My partner?  My lover?” 

“You could just call me husband, you know. Isn’t that what I am?” Jean-Luc turned her hand to look at the ring gracing her left hand.   

Beverly thought about the events of a few nights ago on the holodeck.   It hadn’t been planned, and there were no witnesses or even an officiate.  It had just been the two of them watching the sunset across the ancient Earth site of Stonehenge.  The evening had been romantic, with a stroll through the idyllic English countryside.  Beverly knew she wanted to commit herself to Jean-Luc in every way, but hadn’t quite been so sure of getting married so soon after finally making their relationship official.  She remembered the old idea of promise rings, worn by either the male or female or both and she had decided she would give Jean-Luc a ring to represent her feelings of commitment. She picked a Irish Cladddagh, even though her heritage was Scottish and Jean-Luc’s French, because she admired the design and thought the two hands clasped over a heart represented her and Jean-Luc so well.  She also knew the Claddagh was a symbol of friendship, another appropriate symbol for them. 

Little did she know, but Jean-Luc had been planning the same thing....even down to the same ring.  She had been nervous when she brought the ring out.  She was in the middle of explaining to Jean-Luc how the ring could be worn in different ways – on the right hand pointing in to indicate a relationship, on the left hand pointing out to indicate engaged, and on the left point in to show marriage.  Jean-Luc had chuckled and pulled an identical ring out of his pocket. 

The sight of the matching rings had prompted Beverly to remember the long-forgotten marriage ritual of her Scottish ancestors. Some of them had been Quaker, and Beverly had researched the ritual years ago when she had been engaged to Jack. A Quaker ritual required no officiate, and no witnesses....just the two people who intended to be wed.  The words sprung to the front of her mind. The location was perfect, and she was with the only person who mattered.  She reached for Jean-Luc’s left hand and spoke the words of the ancient vow as she placed the ring on his finger with the point of the heart pointing _in_ :

 “ ** _I take my friend, Jean-Luc Picard, to be my spouse, promising to be unto him a loving and faithful spouse, so long as we both shall live_** _.”_

Jean-Luc’s eyes had gone wide. She knew he knew what she was saying and doing.  He asked her with her eyes if she meant what she was saying and asked if she really wanted this right now. When she nodded, he nodded his head and repeated her words as he slipped the simple ring onto her finger. _“ **I take my friend, Beverly Howard Crusher to be my spouse, promising unto her a loving a faithful spouse, so long as we both shall live**.  _ Beverly, I love you.  I want to spend my life with you _.”_

The couple had kissed, and sealed their marriage by making love right there in the middle of the stone circle.  Beverly was sure some of her more Pagan than Quaker ancestors would have had something interesting to say about that. 

She was pulled back to the present when Jean-Luc called her name. 

“I....ah.....thought we could ease him into it” Beverly floundered trying to find words.  They hadn’t told any of their friends about the ancient ritual, wanting to tell Wesley first. She knew at some point during Wesley’s visit, they would sit him down and tell him....unless he noticed the rings first.  Beverly debated turning the ring around or wearing it on her other hand, but dismissed it as silly.  Surprisingly, none of their friends had even asked about the ring adorning Jean-Luc’s hand.  Deanna probably had her suspicions, but she wisely kept it to herself.  

“Well, if you think that’s for the best.”

“I’ll think about it. Maybe you’re right and it would be easier to tell him right away,” she looked at the clock “He’ll be here soon.  I want to go meet him.”

“I’ll let you go on alone. Admiral Nechayev is coming for a meeting.  I’ll see you later, my love.”  Beverly nodded.   They shared a brief kiss before she left their quarters. 

When Wesley stepped off the platform, he looked like a young man and not the boy he had been when he left.  Beverly greeted him with a hug and walked him to his quarters.

 **“Here you go...your very own quarters.  And they’re as far away from mine as possible!** ”

 **“Mom, you know that’s not why I asked for my own quarters**.  I thought you and the Captain would want the privacy. I know you finally moved in together.”  Beverly blushed.

 “Well, I’ll leave you to get settled.  Would you meet us for dinner tonight?” 

“Sure, Mom.”

###

Dinner that night was strained.  During the day, Wesley had fought with nearly all of his friends and Geordi had even kicked him out of Engineering.   Wesley looked as though he wanted to be anywhere but having dinner with his mother and Jean-Luc.  When they told him of the marriage, his only reply was “Yeah, I knew you would.”  Beverly was startled by her son’s dismissal of this news and wanted to reach across the table and slap him.  Jean-Luc, seeing Beverly’s distress stepped in.

“Wesley, we thought you would be a little more excited by the news.”

“Whatever.”  Jean-Luc raised his eyebrows.

“Whatever? Wesley, you are no longer a teenager and even when you were, you never acted like this. It’s very unbecoming of a Starfleet Cadet, let alone one who has already been an officer.”

“Sorry,  Sir.” Wesley mumbled. “I am very happy for you and Mom, but....it’s not entirely surprising, is it?  I mean, I’ve known since I was a kid you would get married.  I always wanted you to be my dad...”

“Wes, I’ve always thought of you as my son. You know that. “ Wesley shrugged.  Jean-Luc reached out and clapped Wesley on the shoulder.  “What’s troubling you, son?” 

Wesley shook off Jean-Luc’ hand and exploded.  “Son?  So now, I can call you Dad?  What about all those times before when I needed a father and he was dead and you weren’t interested in anything more than having sex with my mom!”  Jean-Luc was speechless.  He thought he had done everything possible to be there for Wesley over the years. _Where is this coming from?_  Beverly had had enough. She rose in anger and slapped Wesley across the face. 

“That was uncalled for!  Jean-Luc has done everything for you, and you know it! He made you an Ensign and helped you get into the Academy! He used to take you places and helped you with your homework when you were younger.  What more did you want from him? Apologize to Jean-Luc right now!”

“No. What are you going to do? Send me to my room? Oh wait, I don’t live here anymore.“ Wesley rose and stormed out of his parent’s quarters.  Beverly made to go after him but Jean-Luc held up his hand.

“Beverly...let him go.  He can’t go far.  Maybe Deanna or Will should go talk to him instead.”

Beverly’s eyes filled with tears.  “Jean-Luc....I don’t know what’s happened to Wesley. My boy, my sweet baby boy....”  Jean-Luc reached across the table and squeezed Beverly’s hand.

“I know my love, I know.” Jean-Luc tapped his badge “Picard to Riker.”

“Riker here.”

“Number One, Beverly and I need you to do something for us...Wesley is...unsettled.  There’s something wrong with the boy and we were hoping you would find him and go talk to him?”

“Of course, Sir.  Please tell Beverly I think of Wesley like a little brother.”  Beverly snorted in the background. 

“As long as you don’t start calling me Mom, Will....I’m definitely not old enough to be your mother!”

“I won’t.... _Mom_ ,”  They could hear the teasing in his voice.  “I’ll let you know what I find out. Riker out.”

Jean-Luc rose and led Beverly over to the sofa, returning to the table for their glasses.  He sat next to her and silently pulled her against him.  The two sat in contemplative silence, each mulling over their thoughts.  Jean-Luc was wracked with guilt, worried now that he hadn’t done enough for the boy after Jack’s death,  and Beverly was worried about Wesley accepting her marriage to Jean-Luc.  Jean-Luc silently wept for his almost-son.

It didn’t take long before there was a chime at their door. 

“Come.”  Will entered and looked over to where Jean-Luc and Beverly were sat on their sofa,  their untouched glasses of wine on the table. It was obvious they were both visibly upset over the confrontation with Wesley.  Beverly’s eyes were red-rimmed and her nose was red. Will looked up at his captain’s face a saw the same red-rimmed eyes.  He had never seen his Captain this upset....and they weren’t going to like what he had to say to them.

“Sir, Doctor...Wesley Crusher is not on the ship.”  Beverly dislodged herself from Jean-Luc’s arms and sat up straight.

“What do you mean my son is no longer on board?”  Her eyes flashed in anger.  Jean-Luc reached out and took her hand and the action seemed to visibly calm her slightly.

“The Chief said he beamed Wesley down to the planet about twenty minutes ago.  Worf is on the ground looking for him with a team, but-”  Jean-Luc cut Will off.

“He’s wondering why I would waste the ship’s resources to find a single Cadet, isn’t he?”

“Sir, allow me to be frank?”  Jean-Luc nodded.  “Yes. And so am I.  I know he is Beverly’s  son, but...”  Jean-Luc sighed.  He shared a glance with Beverly before answering.

“Wesley is my son.” Will’s eyes bugged out.  “No, not like that, Number One.  Beverly and I are married. Wesley is now my step-son.” 

“Oh! Congratulations! Why didn’t you tell us?”

“We wanted to tell Wesley first,” Beverly said “But it seemed to have backfired.”

“Ah.  I see. Well, I think we can use ship’s resources to find the Captain’s son.”  Jean-Luc’s ears turned red. 

“I hadn’t even thought about how Wesley might feel to be ‘The Captain’s Son’.   No, Will...tell Worf to call off the search. Wesley will come back. I think he might just need to come to terms with this and his new...status.”

“Of course, Sir.  And allow me to once again congratulate the two of you.”

“Thank you, Number One.”

###

Wesley came back, but he didn’t plan on staying long. He was in Jean-Luc’s Ready Room pacing.  Jean-Luc tried to follow the boy with his eyes, but it was dizzying.

“Wes.  Please sit down.”

“No, Captain....I can’t.”

“What’s wrong? Is there something I can do to help?” Wesley laughed.

“Sir....I don’t think I should continue at the Academy. I’m going to resign.”  Wesley’s words hung in the air between them.  Jean-Luc took a deep breath. 

 “Wesley,”  Jean-Luc began, “Son.  Are you sure?  Perhaps you should take some time...a sabbatical maybe...and think about your decision?”

“No, Sir.  I’m sorry. I can’t do this anymore.  I hope you’re not angry with me.”

“Of course not.  Disappointed that you won’t be completing you’re education, but I’m not mad at you....but I can’t speak for your mother.  Wesley, have you spoken to her yet?”

Wesley hung his head. “No, Sir.  And I was pretty awful to her too, wasn’t I?”

“Indeed you were. Why don’t we go find her and sit down and talk...as  a family?”

###

Beverly was mad.  “How could you just leave like that? And treat Jean-Luc that way!  I thought I taught you better manners than that!”

“Mom...I...”

“Beverly....I think you had better sit down and listen to Wesley.” Beverly sat.  Jean-Luc sat next to her and grabbed her hand, and Wesley began to pace.

“Mom...I’m leaving the Academy.”  She gasped.

“What?  Why?”

“Mom, **Starfleet’s not for me.”**

 “Wesley, I don’t understand.” Beverly wrung her hands. “You wanted to become a Starfleet officer  ever since you were a child. You used to beg Jean-Luc to let you dress up in his uniforms whenever he visited and you used to insist we called you ‘Captain’!  What happened?”

“Mom....I wasn’t enjoying myself.  I don’t want to disappoint you or the Captain....Jean-Luc...Dad?  I don’t know what to call him anymore.  He was so proud of me when I left for the Academy, and even when I got in trouble with Nova squadron he still stood by me...I just want you and him to be proud of me.”

“Wesley, you know we’re both proud of you.  I’m sorry if we pushed you.  So, what will you do?  I’m sure you can stay here as long as you want....right, Jean-Luc?”

“Yes, of course. Either with your own quarters or you can stay with us.  You could even become a civilian engineer if you wanted to.  I’m sure Geordi would appreciate your help.”  Wesley looked down.

“Uh....I kind of owe Geordi and apology too.”

“I see.”

“Mom....Jean-Luc, do you remember the traveller?” They both nodded.

“I remember he told me you had a lot of potential....I assumed he meant as a Starfleet officer.”

“He’s invited me to join him....to learn from him...to do what he does.”

“And this is what you want to do? You’re positive?”

“Yes.  He said I can leave with him tonight.  I know I’ll be away, but I’ll try to visit....”

Beverly smiled and tried to hide her tears. “I’m sure you will. Go on and pack.  We’ll see you off.”

“Thanks for understanding, Mom.”

The door had barely slid shut behind him before Beverly’s tears fell.  Jean-Luc pulled her into his arms and did his best to comfort her. 

“Jean-Luc, I don’t want him to go.”

“I know.  I don’t particularly want him to, either.”

“You’re his Captain, order him to stay!”  Jean-Luc held Beverly’s hands in his and looked into her eyes.

“Oh, how I wish I could, my love.  But if I ordered Wes to stay in Starfleet, he would only rebel and begin to hate us. At least this way we can remain on good terms with him. “  He kissed her forehead.

“I guess you’re right.  I just don’t want him to leave...he’ll be so far away.....what if we never see him again?”

“I’m sure we will, my love. I’m sure we will.”

Jean-Luc walked Beverly to Wesley’s door so the two of them could say goodbye privately.  He would meet them in the transporter room, but first, he wanted to do something for Wesley.  Jean-Luc went to his ready room and initiated a call to Admiral Brand.

“Admiral, I was wondering if you could do a favour for me...”

###

Wesley shouldered his bag as Beverly entered his quarters.  “Where’s Dad?”

“He said he’ll meet us in the transporter room.  He wanted to give us some time alone. Are you really ok with Jean-Luc and I being married?”

“Mom....I know he loves you.  And, I’ve always wanted him to be my father. I just hope I haven’t made him too mad at me.”

“I’m sure he can forgive you.”

Jean-Luc was waiting for them in the transporter room and he held out his arms to hug Wesley.  He held him close. “Wes....Son...I want you to know that no matter what, I am proud of you and I love you.”

“I love you too....Dad.”  Jean-Luc smiled. 

“Wes, I’ve been waiting for too many years to hear you call me Dad...and now you’re leaving us?”

Wesley smiled. “I thought I would practice...for when I get to meet my little brother or sister.  I’ll have to call you Dad then!”

Jean-Luc glanced at Beverly. She shook her head.  “Yes, well...if that happens we’ll try to inform you.  I also wanted to let you know that I’ve spoken with Admiral Brand, and he has decided that if you wanted to return to Starfleet in the future, you will retain the rank of Ensign.”

Wesley smiled.  “Thank you, Sir.  I’ll keep that in mind. Well, goodbye, Mom....bye Dad. I love you.”

“I love you too, Wes.”  Beverly was holding back her tears.  She didn’t want Wesley’s last glance of her for however long to be of her crying her eyes out.  Wesley stood on the transporter pad and locked eyes with Jean-Luc. “Energize.”

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> I'm sure you're wondering why this is no longer comfort IX. Frankly, I decided it works better as a separate story/series since it diverts from canon and the rest of the comfort series doesn't.


End file.
